FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 25, 2003

Corinna Kaarlela, News Director
Source: Cara Peracchi Douglas, Director Public Affairs and Communications, UCSF-Fresno
Phone: 559.243.3606
E-mail: carapd@ucsfresno.edu
Web: www.ucsfresno.edu

First UCSF Fresno faculty inducted into Academy of Medical Educators

Fresno -- Michael W. Peterson, MD, CCVMC Endowed Chair in Medicine of UCSF Fresno, is the first faculty member from Fresno to be honored with induction into the Haile T. Debas Academy of Medical Educators of the UCSF School of Medicine.

“Being inducted into the Academy of Medical Educators is a special honor,” said Peterson. “The Academy serves as an excellent source of creativity and networking for refining medical teaching and providing innovative research opportunities for the Valley’s medical students and residents.”
Fifteen faculty were inducted at a recent ceremony, bringing the total membership to 52.
The Academy, founded in 2000, now serves as a national model for promoting excellence in medical education. It is dedicated to creating an environment that enhances the status of teachers of medical students, and fosters curricular innovation.

“Dr. Peterson is very deserving of this induction,” said Joan Voris, MD, associate dean of UCSF Fresno. “Since joining our faculty in 2002 he has worked tirelessly to implement new teaching methods and develop research projects that will challenge the Valley’s next generation of physicians.”

UCSF Fresno educates one in every three Central Valley physicians currently practicing in the seven specialty programs offered. UCSF Fresno offers specialty training in family practice, internal medicine, emergency medicine, pediatrics, psychiatry, surgery, and obstetrics/gynecology. In addition, UCSF Fresno educates about 400 medical students annually.

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Note: Photos of Michael W. Peterson, MD, are available upon request and interviews with Peterson can be arranged by calling Cara Peracchi Douglas at 559.243.3606